2014 S4 Crec tuning / Pulley options

[Darren McDonnell]

Hi I am about 6 weeks into owning my first Audi and I am trying to get a plan together for tuning it in the new year once I have serviced it fully.

I have been looking at the option of stage 1 and 2 but other than MRC who does a pulley for the Crec engine. I will be mostly doing to work to get it ready for tuning so would like to see my options to keep it as cost effective as possible or to get the best value.

I come from tuning Turbo cars and this is a little different in the approach but not to far off.

I have also been looking into the option of using a larger rad for the charge cooler to help keep temps under control.

Up to now i have the only changed the filter and intake pipe.

Thanks

 

[Dippy]

The CREC engine has a bolt-on supercharger pulley so only the tuners who chose to design and manufacturer a smaller one will be able to supply. However there are good reasons to use the crank pulley for tuning instead and that design did not change on the CREC engine - all the crank pulley options out there will be applicable.

The CREC engine also came with a new ECU - the SIMOS16 but it has been cracked years ago and many tuners will be able to remap it. You'll just need to check with your chosen tuner that they do have the right tool.

The supercharger for the CREC engine was redesigned and has improved intercoolers. I've been stage 2 for years without an uprated HX and have had no thermal issues (and I monitor values such as IAT on my FIS-Control MMI).

 

[Darren McDonnell]

Thanks for the good Reply Dippy. I have made my mind up to have the remap done by MRC but when I got the costs for there Pulley so i could self fit it beforehand it seemed a little steep at £400.

I am still in two minds on weather to go with a stage 1 or 2, The car does have higher than average miles

I was going to see how i got on with the engine and cooling temps once the remap had been done, i was going to use one of the ODB / ECU apps to get a log of what was going on.

Have you done any trackdays at all in your car at all.

 

[Darren McDonnell]

After doing some more looking and reading today the cost of the crank Pulley looks about normal from MRC so I may just go with there item.

Has anyone reported any noticeable difference in the cabin having a solid pulley.

Cheers

 

[Dippy]

I have a vdamper pulley so I can't comment other than that MRC have been tuning these engines using their solid pulleys for many years now and if there was a short to medium term problem with using an undampened pulley I'd sure we'd know about it by now. Since I had the option of the fluidampr-based pulley it was just a peace-of-mind decision for me.

No I don't track my car. I have been to Thruxton many times and driven various cars there including a Lambo, but I get far more enjoyment driving the single-seat race cars round the track. So what with the need for track-day insurance and extra wear on tyres and brakes I prefer to leave my S5 in the car park.

 

[Darren McDonnell]

Cheers Dippy

Unfortunately i dont have access to a dedicated track car so have to get my fix with the daily driver, I also like to have a drive where you get to really feel what the car can do and how it feels in a controlled environment, after all you dont and shouldn't get a real feel on the road. I used to own an almost full track car that started life as my road car but it had to go many years ago when buying a house was the thing i needed to do.

What single seater do you drive and is it just a hobby or competition

 

[Dippy]

They have a bunch of Formula Renault cars. I just occasionally book a package there. I am under no illusions about my driving ability and I'm getting too old for it anyway (at least that's what my back tells me afterwards).

 

[Darren McDonnell]

Nice one and thanks for the help